


Your eyes look beautiful in violet

by Galrafloofandlove



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Canon Compliant, He was like 17/18 and had a few cigarettes, Kuron is a good boy, M/M, One Shot, Pre-Kerberos Mission, References to Drugs, Romantic Soulmates, Smoking, Soulmates, Underage Smoking, mostly - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-12
Updated: 2018-12-12
Packaged: 2019-09-16 09:09:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,776
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16951140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Galrafloofandlove/pseuds/Galrafloofandlove
Summary: The concept of soulmates always puzzled Keith. As did the concept of color. He was used to seeing nothing but dull hues of gray, his vision never showing pure black or white. But he had learned to adjust. Most wished for the day they kissed their one true love and saw the world in screaming bright color, but Keith couldn’t care less. He was fine with the dark and light grays he saw. Even before his father died, he knew the world was too cruel to him to allow him to find his soulmate without problems.Or, a canon compliant Soulmate AU





	Your eyes look beautiful in violet

**Author's Note:**

> Formatting is a little odd on this one, but it'll have to do!
> 
> As always, enjoy.

The concept of soulmates always puzzled Keith. As did the concept of color. He was used to seeing nothing but dull hues of gray, his vision never showing pure black or white. But he had learned to adjust. Most wished for the day they kissed their one true love and saw the world in screaming bright color, but Keith couldn’t care less. He was fine with the dark and light grays he saw. Even before his father died, he knew the world was too cruel to him to allow him to find his soulmate without problems. 

 

His father always assured him his mother wasn’t dead, because his vision was still bright and shining, instead of the darkened hue everything took when your soulmate passed. 

Keith wasn’t sure how much he believed him. 

 

In the home, multiple people were able to see color. They raved about how magical it was to see something different from gray. And so he started to wonder what it was like. 

 

He stupidity started to dream that he would see everything bright and beautiful one day, and the universe would be kind to him for once in his life. 

 

He should’ve known those would only be dreams. 

 

~~~~~~

 

Shiro started dating Adam West a few months after he met Keith.

 

They all thought he was the one. Shiro always smiled so wide when he came back from a date, and Keith believed almost every time he had kissed Adam and he could see the world as it was meant to be seen. 

 

But after their third date, and tons of Keith pushing Shiro to just kiss the man, Shiro knocked on Keith's dorm room door, tears starting to form in the corners of his eyes. 

 

And Keith knew in that instant that gray was all Shiro saw when he pulled his lips away from Adam’s.

 

~~~~~~

 

The evening before the Kerberos launch, Keith found Shiro with a cigarette between his lips sitting on the roof of the Garrison. 

 

“I thought you quit.” He said as he approached Shiro, seeing wisps of smoke dance in the air around him. 

“I did.” Shiro threw the cigarette off the roof. “Then Adam left.”

Keith pushed his balled up fists further down into the pockets of his sweatshirt. Commander Holt informed him it was a “bright red”, and that it reminded Holt of Keith’s temper. Keith imagined people must turn this “red” color when they’re angry- nobody had explained much about colors to him aside from “find your soulmate, kiss, and see the world in beautiful color”.

He sat down on the cold metal next to Shiro, and carefully lifted a cigarette out of the box, took the lighter out of Shiro's grasp, and lit it, watching the musty dark gray flame sway in the wind.

“I shouldn’t let you do that.” Shiro said, taking another for himself. 

“There’s no point in stopping me.” Keith pulled the stick from his lips to speak.“I would just do it with somebody else.” 

They were silent for a while, staring out into the gray abyss in front of them. Nothing but the soft sound of their breath and the gentle click of the lighter every now and then. 

“God.” Shiro broke the silence without a second thought. “I need some fucking weed.” 

“Fridge.” Was all Keith said in response, referring to the brownies he’d picked up last night from some Garret cadet. His brains were squished to jelly at this point, from both school and the stress of Shiro leaving, possibility forever. 

The man next to him let out a small chuckle, knowing exactly what Keith meant by just that one word. “You got some more?” 

“Always.” Keith threw his own cigarette over the edge of the roof.

“Tempting. But I have to pilot tomorrow.” Shiro snatched up the lighter and box, shoving them in his pocket and standing up. “Iverson would kill me if I flew while stoned.” Shiro gave a light, airy laugh at that. 

“Your loss.” Keith stood up as well, and noticed Shiro was staring out into the desert, staring out into the horizon. 

“Hey, Keith?” His voice was so quiet that Keith had to lip-read the sentence. 

“Yeah?”

Shiro swallowed. “What do you think the sunset looks like?” 

Keith wasn’t sure how to answer. He didn’t have a concept of any color except for gray, black and white. How was he supposed to know? 

“Mysterious.” Was all he could manage. 

“Yeah.” Shiro’s boots made a clunking sound as he walked towards the ladder back down. “Mysterious.”

 

~~~~~~~

 

Aboard the Castle of Lions, It turned out Alteans had the same soulmate curse placed upon them. 

 

And Coran was the only one who had the curse lifted. 

 

Except his vision was dark, outshadowed from his husband’s death 10,000 years ago. 

 

Time seemed to drag on. Fight the Galra, win, move on. His life turned into an endless cycle of nothingness. 

 

Until Shiro visited his room on the castle late one night, after his unexpected return from assumed death affter the battle with Zarkon.

Nightmares weren’t uncommon for Shiro, and he always came to Keith when he could. Something about Keith helped him fall asleep, he guessed. He had no idea, no clue why, but as long as it worked, he’d play along. 

 

But there was something...different about Shiro that day. He had a gentle, light gray glimmer in his pupil, looking at Keith like he was a fallen angel. 

 

It all went by too fast for him to remember details. Shiro’s lips somehow fell onto his own, rough and jarring, but sweet and soft at the same time. It was everything Keith had ever wanted, and more he didn’t even know existed. 

 

It was heaven. 

 

Pure bliss. 

 

He didn’t care if he still couldn’t see the color of love after the kiss, because deep down he knew exactly what it was, exactly how it felt inside. 

 

And he forgot the words that fell from Shiro’s lips. 

 

“Your eyes look beautiful in violet.” 

 

~~~~~~~

 

The words were dung out from the deepest recess of his memory during the fight against Shiro. 

 

Shiro was fighting his soulmate, trying to kill him. 

 

“Your eyes look beautiful in violet, Keith.” He repeated. He repeated months, years after the first time he had said the soul-crushing sentence. 

 

He had never explained what violet was to Keith- he’d never explained any of the colors, he’d never made so much as a nod to what the Universe looked like with saturation added. 

 

Now, with swords slashing and words cutting wounds deeper than any blade possibly could, Keith couldn’t find the time or energy to care. 

 

The words, however, played over and over again in that sinister tone. 

 

“Shiro, Please. You’re my brother” 

 

_ Your eyes look beautiful in violet _

 

“I love you!”

 

_ Your eyes look beautiful in violet _

 

“K-Keith.” 

 

**_Your eyes look beautiful in violet_ **

  
  
  


Yeah. 

 

He bet they did. 

 

~~~~~~

 

It was funny, in a way. 

 

His vision was still tinted in gray after the end of the war. 

 

And as it turned out, Shiro’s was too. 

 

When his consciousness was placed in the clone’s body, the color was drained from his sight. 

  
  
  


Keith was leaving Earth tomorrow. Following his mother back into space, back into the unknown. 

 

He couldn’t stay on Earth. He couldn’t be grounded to a single place. Still, he’d miss it. The sunset was like no other in any of the known galaxies. 

 

“Hey.” A gentle voice came up behind him, behind the grassy hill Keith was sitting on, watching the sun disappear into the Earth. 

“Hey.” Keith replied. He would know that voice anywhere. 

 

All too soon, Shiro sat down next to him. All too soon, Shiro was spilling out his heart. 

 

“I love you too.” Shiro opened with, in a quiet, delicate tone like anything louder would scare Keith anyway. 

 

Keith’s mouth flew agape in silent shock. 

 

“I’ve loved you since you saved me, since you first piloted black. I just...I was scared. I was scared of rejection. I was scared you’d think I was weird. I was scared to ruin the friendship we had.” Shiro spoke quickly, voice shaking. 

 

Keith just sat there, shocked. 

 

“God, this sounds….I sound like a creep. You were just sitting here, and I just came and disturbed you and...god, I’m sorry. I’ll just...go.” Shiro sounded upset, like he had just failed in his life mission. 

 

Keith’s impulse was the only thing controlling him when he heard a gentle sob. 

 

He took Shiro’s face in his hands, framing the beautiful outline of Shiro’s face. The tears staining the older’s cheek came to a halt then. “What are you-”

 

Keith cut Shiro off with his lips. 

 

Shiro melted into the kiss, as did Keith. Shiro’s lips were chapped, but gentle and loving at the same time. They tasted like candy, the kind a child would scarf down on Halloween night. Shiro took his time before he pushed Keith’s lips apart with his tongue, waiting for Keith to grant him approval to turn the kiss filthy. Keith happily granted permission when he pushed his own tongue into Shiro’s waiting mouth. They explored each other’s mouths with glee, neither of them realizing how much they actually wanted this.

 

The kiss felt like it lasted for hours. Keith would've been happy to kiss Shiro for eternity. 

 

When they finally pulled away, everything lit up around him like it was Christmas morning. 

 

Every single color, every single hue, was already stored in his brain. He saw every shade, and was able to put a name to them all. The dark green of the grass, the light brown dirt underneath, the soft oranges and yellows of the sunset as the sun dipped below the horizon. 

 

The beauty of it all. 

 

Shiro cupped Keith’s chin in the calloused skin of his flesh hand. All of Keith’s worries faded away as Shiro caresses his cheek, studying his face like it was the meaning of life. 

 

“Your eyes look beautiful in violet.” 

 

The phrase was said again in Shiro’s voice, again for the first time in years. 

Keith just smiled. All malicious intent associated with the phase vanished when Shiro, the real Shiro, said it so loving, so tender. The stars in Shiro’s eyes danced in front of Keith as the sky grew darker and darker, the only source of light being from the ends of Shiro’s Altean arm and the mellow glow of the marking on the chestplate of the blade uniform. 

Somewhere, Keith thought, the clone of Shiro was looking down at them. 

And Keith knew in his heart that the clone was smiling at the scene. 

**Author's Note:**

>  
> 
> [Tumblr](https://galrafloofandlove.tumblr.com)! || [Twitter](https://twitter.com/GalraFloof)


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